No SunPass? To avoid fee for new tolling system on Turnpike in Miami-Dade, open a Toll-By-Plate account

Turnpike stops collecting cash on Homestead Extension on Feb. 19

The $106 million project will re-stripe I-95 with two toll express lanes and four regular lanes in each direction. A barrier of plastic poles will separate the express lanes from the regular lanes.

Existing lanes will shrink from 12 feet to 11 feet with the exception of the two right "free" lanes, which will remain 12 feet. In the first phase of the project between the Golden Glades and I-395 in Miami, all lanes were narrowed to 11 feet.

The southbound express lanes will begin where the Broward Boulevard park-and-ride lot ramp merges onto I-95. An additional entrance will be located south of I-595.

The northbound express lanes will taper to one lane north of Griffin Road and continue to Davie Boulevard, where they will end and transition into the existing carpool lane.

Ramps at the Ives Dairy Road interchange, where rush-hour traffic backs up onto I-95, will be lengthened and widened to hold more cars as part of the project.

May 14, 2010

Q: Bailey Road, which straddles the border of North Lauderdale and Tamarac between U.S. 441 and Northwest 64th Avenue/Southwest 81sth Avenue, has been torn up and patched, and torn up again for more than a year. Concrete pipes and other miscellaneous concrete items have been strewn along the road for just as long. What's going on?

Thom Sacco, Tamarac

A: What you're seeing is part of a Broward County neighborhood improvement project to bring water and sewer lines to the Broadview Estates neighborhood that was annexed into North Lauderdale in 2003.

The preliminary work includes putting pipes underground that will connect areas north and south of Bailey.

Once that is finished, the county will begin widening Bailey Road from two to four lanes between S.R. 7 and Northwest 64th/Southwest 81st Avenue.

The actual water and sewer improvements are still being designed, but they won't impact the road construction.

By getting the preliminary work out of the way, the county avoids tearing up the Bailey Road after it is widened.

The road construction, which county officials expect will begin at the end of this summer, should take about 18 months.

May 10, 2010

Q: Can you find out when the two southernmost high mast lights at the entrance to southbound Florida's Turnpike from Boynton Beach Boulevard will be repaired? They have been out for months.

A: Let there be light. Turnpike officials say the problem was fixed last week.

It was a little more complicated than changing a light bulb, however.

There was an erosion problem in the vicinity of the electrical boxes in the ground that distribute current to the poles, said turnpike spokeswoman Nichole Kalil. That, in turn, caused the lights to go dark.

May 9, 2010

Q: How can I find out information about upcoming road construction on Bonaventure Boulevard in Weston?

John Ferenc, Wilton Manors.

A: The city plans to build two roundabouts on Bonaventure Boulevard.

Work on the first project, at Blatt Boulevard, began last week and is expected to take about six months to complete, said city spokeswoman Denise Barrett.

The city hasn't sought bids on the second roundabout project at Bonaventure and Saddle Club Road.

Both intersections currently are four-way stops. The city is building the roundabouts because both intersections have not been approved for traffic signals by Broward County.

You can get updates on the projects at http://www.westonfl.org. Click on "Happening Now" to find information on lane closures as they are relayed to the city by contractors. You also can look for updates on the city's Twitter account – http://www.twitter.com/cityofweston.

Follow Michael Turnbell on Twitter @MikeTurnpike or Facebook at http://www.sunsentinel.com/concreteideas